My husband leans badly at meal times to the left or right in his Karma wheelchair Stuffing a pillow down the side is ok but not ideal. At first I purchased the only thing I could find to adapt a Karma wheelchair - a pair of blue foam velcro supports from China which soon wouldn’t stay in position. AJM, the wheelchair supplier contracted to the NHS, gave us an Ibis Azalea chair which had great lateral supports but pinned him in the chair (couldn’t move to get out/go to wc, bed etc) and was so heavy/non self-propelled that to move anywhere required a carer. Then an Ibis Breezy (£2,635 with an NHS voucher) was suggested - a more comfortable pleasant chair but not enough lateral support higher up around his waistline, so requires a harness which they can supply but I read they are uncomfortable. No medics - not community or hospice OTs, nor Parkinson’s nurse, nor private or NHS wheelchair services - nor Parkinson’s UK - seem to know enough about this problem/how to solve it. I really don’t want to spend that kind of money on something which isn’t going to solve the problem and find it hard to believe thee isn’t a lightweight wheelchair which fixes this. If there is I can’t find it. Suggestions welcome.
Hi serotonin, thank you for your post and we’re sorry we’ve not been able to help you and your husband yet.
We understand wanting to get advice before spending that sort of money and we hope you find the community helpful. We do have some information on our website on equipment to help people with Parkinson’s, including wheelchairs, which we hope you’ll find helpful: Equipment to help you get around | Parkinson's UK
This link also has a list of useful contacts to help with daily living equipment: Useful contacts for daily living equipment | Parkinson's UK
We hope this is helpful. If you have any other questions, please call our free helpline on 0808 800 0303 and our specialists will be happy to help.
Take care
Parkinson’s UK Moderation Team 
Hello Serotonin, I work within the industry. If the chair is supplied via the NHS your local wheelchair services should be able to provide you with a solution. If you have purchased a chair with a PWB (VOUCHER) a local mobility distributor to you should be able to provide assistance. A note of caution I would always seek a company that can provide a full assessment as the lean may be due to a pelvis issue which is contributing to the lean. A full assessment would provide a bigger picture ensuring you are accommodating the issue but also future proofing. If you want a name of a distributor local to you let me know.
Hi Alignmotion, thanku for responding. The AJM (NHS) assessor seemed to know little about lateral support options/type of harness and didn’t mention pelvic tilt. How balanced the PWP is when sitting across both buttocks can make a big difference. You’re right about an assesssment, from which I learnt that width of seat, height of seat, length of lower leg are important in getting a w/chair right.